Gnome Chemistry Utils

Gnome Chemistry Utils (popularly known as GChemPaint) is a 2D and 3D chemical editor application that provides users with a collection of open source libraries and programs related to chemistry, and suitable for the GNOME desktop environment.

Includes a variety of useful components

It’s comprised of a 2D chemical editor, a periodic table of the elements, a three-dimensional molecule viewer that uses the OpenGL specification to display molecular models, a spectrum viewer, as well as an editor and viewer for crystal structures.

In addition, the application includes a chemical calculator that allows users to estimate mass composition, raw formule, isotopic pattern, and molar weight. Its core functions work based on a built-in C++ library that provides various classes and a few widgets.

Create benzene mesomery and retrosynthesis

While GChemPaint, the two-dimensional chemical editor, allows users to create benzene mesomery and retrosynthesis, the GSpectrum spectrum viewer tool supports viewing of o-Xylene and Methane.

On the other hand, the GChem3D tool can be used to view 3D structures, and GChemCalc to calculate various chemistry problems. An interesting fact about this application is that each of its components are available as separate programs, or commands if you run the software from the command-line.

Getting started with Gnome Chemistry Utils

The application is distributed as stable and development releases (both versions can be found on the dedicated download section) downloadable as source archives only, which can be configure, compiled and installed on any Linux distribution.

In order to compile, install and use the Gnome Chemistry Utils program, you will first need to install all of its dependencies, including goffice, OpenBabel, GtkGLExt, and BODR, which are available from the default software repositories of your Linux distribution or from the official GNOME repository.

Bottom line

Summing up, Gnome Chemistry Utils is a quite useful and powerful program for beginner chemistry students who are looking for an open source alternative to complex and expensive chemistry software.

What is new in this release:

• GChemPaint:
• Fix an object bounds issue.
• Mozilla plugin:
• Supports the npapi-sdk package as requirement.
• All applications:
• Fix typos in appdata files.

What is new in version 0.14.9:

• GChemPaint:
• Ensure that the document size is always updated. [#43091]
• 3d viewer and GCrystal:
• Fix rotation. [#42977] (patch from Toni Andjelkovic)
• All applications:
• Add appdata files.

What is new in version 0.14.8:

• 0.14.8 fixes display issues in GChemPaint which appeared when used with Gtk+-3.0 >= 3.10.0.
• It also fixes various issues related to partial selections.

What is new in version 0.14.7:

• GCrystal:
• Fix crash in dialogs with recent Gtk+.
• Mozilla plugin:
• Fix crashers for 2D and 3D molecules.

What is new in version 0.14.6:

• 3d viewer:
• Avoid empty entries in recent list.
• GchemPaint:
• Restore .mol files support.
• Fix CML import (also affected 3d viewer and >GCrystal).
• Fix BMP export (add a white background to avoid full black BMP images, also enhance pasting in LibreOffice since this is the format used there).
• GCrystal:
• Fix test order in lines code. [#41261]
• GSpectrum:
• Fix access to uninitialized data.
• Don't double free a string.
• GOffice component:
• Don't crash when editing after saving a GChemPaint object.
• Mozilla plugin:
• Fix supported mime-types list. (see Debian bug #716961)
• Other:
• Fix build on FreeBSD (Koop Mast). [#41256]

What is new in version 0.14.4:

• Only one change, but it fixes a crasher which occured when dragging the mouse over a fragment (atom group).
• GChemPaint:
• Do not use a NULL atom properties. [#40194]

What is new in version 0.14.3:

• GChemPaint:
• Really close the window on delete event.
• Don't crash when aligning ungrouped objects.
• GChemTable:
• Fix crash when using masses in a graph.
• Fix graph behavior after edition.
• All:
• Make sure to not create a C++ locale from a NULL string.

What is new in version 0.14.2:

• GChemPaint:
• Do not allow a mesomery destruction when inside a reaction.
• Fix molecule deletion inside a mesomery.
• Fix reactant deletion inside a reaction.
• Don't crash when a mesomery inside a reaction is destroyed.
• Check molecule consistency when loading, avoids a stack overflow.
• Enhanced representaion of chiral molecules imported from CML and other formats.
• Fix crash when deleting a cyclic bond.
• Fix crash when loading some molecules (was introduced in 0.14.1 when fixing the stack overflow issue and is fixed in 0.14.2).
• GCrystal:
• Fix row selection operations order in grids.

What is new in version 0.14.0:

• Use GOffice-0.10 and Gtk+-3.0
• GChemPaint:
• New lasso tool.
• Support for brackets.
• Support for multi-steps reactions.
• Optionally colored atomic symbols.
• Newman projections.
• GCrystal:
• Revisited user interface.
• Spectrum viewer:
• Transform FID to spectrum.
• Support NUTS files.